History

The Fourth Fleet was originally established in 1943, during
World War II, along with the other
numbered fleets. The fleet was later absorbed by U.S.Second Fleet and disbanded in
1950 prior to being re-established in 2008.

Controversy

This reactivation, without consulting regional partners, sparked
concerns within their governments. The governments of Argentina and
Brazil made formal inquiries as to the fleet's mission in the
region. In Venezuela, Hugo Chavez accused the United States of
attempting to frighten the people of South America by reactivating
the fleetand vowed that his country's new Sukhoi Su-30 jets could sink any American ships
invading Venezuelan waters. Cuban ex-president Fidel Castro warned that
it could be lead to more incidents such as the Colombian
intervention in Ecuador.